It is so much like attraction exercised by magic.

It’s a beginning

This corner of my studio is where most of my painting gets done; not that I’m in the habit of working by candle light mind you- It was days end when I took this photo and by that time (Imagine any late hour you like) I’ve usually faced whatever I’ve been working on towards the wall (well, the bookcase really) before settling down to read or perhaps enjoy some podcast or other – The H.P. Lovecraft LiteraryPodcast and A Podcast to the Curious ( mood lighting is absolutely necessary here) being current favorites of mine.

The first time I saw anything like Gorey’s art was when I was a child. There I’d be, legs crossed and upright on the floor, as close to the television as my parents would allow while they, sitting behind me on the couch, settled in to watch Masterpiece Mystery Theatre. The show itself held little enough interest for me but that comfortably macabre black and white animation that inaugurated the proceedings held me enthralled ( and still does – croquet in the rain, falling masonry, giant urns. Brilliant!)

Here is a photograph of all the Amphogorey(s) I’ve got (and a picture of the cat that served as a kind of creative germ). The books are not terribly collectable but that just means I’m free to enjoy them all the more. It’s nice to see a well loved book on the shelves.

Incidentally, the painting in the header: Writers Block, oh the Horror! – another oil painting of mine – sums up the occasional uncertainty I feel when I have to commit my thoughts to paper *ahem* and so I thought it an appropriate enough image.